Dietitians and Nutritionists
Plan and conduct food service or nutritional programs to assist in the promotion of health and control of disease. May supervise activities of a department providing quantity food services, counsel individuals, or conduct nutritional research.
Also known as: Administrative Dietitian, Clinical Dietician, Clinical Dietitian, Clinical Nutritionist, Community Dietitian, Consultant Dietitian, Diet Consultant, Diet Counselor, ...
Annual Salary
Median annual wage (May 2024)
Job Outlook
Projected growth, 2024–2034 (Faster than average)
What You'd Do
- Assess nutritional needs, diet restrictions, and current health plans to develop and implement dietary-care plans and provide nutritional counseling.
- Consult with physicians and health care personnel to determine nutritional needs and diet restrictions of patient or client.
- Advise patients and their families on nutritional principles, dietary plans, diet modifications, and food selection and preparation.
- Counsel individuals and groups on basic rules of good nutrition, healthy eating habits, and nutrition monitoring to improve their quality of life.
- Develop curriculum and prepare manuals, visual aids, course outlines, and other materials used in teaching.
- Coordinate diet counseling services.
- Plan, conduct, and evaluate dietary, nutritional, and epidemiological research.
- Plan and conduct training programs in dietetics, nutrition, and institutional management and administration for medical students, health-care personnel, and the general public.
- Write research reports and other publications to document and communicate research findings.
- Evaluate laboratory tests in preparing nutrition recommendations.
- Incorporate patient cultural, ethnic, or religious preferences and needs in the development of nutrition plans.
- Record and evaluate patient and family health and food history, including symptoms, environmental toxic exposure, allergies, medication factors, and preventive health-care measures.
- Develop recipes and menus to address special nutrition needs, such as low glycemic, low histamine, or gluten- or allergen-free.
- Monitor food service operations to ensure conformance to nutritional, safety, sanitation and quality standards.
- Coordinate recipe development and standardization and develop new menus for independent food service operations.
- Develop policies for food service or nutritional programs to assist in health promotion and disease control.
- Inspect meals served for conformance to prescribed diets and standards of palatability and appearance.
- Prepare and administer budgets for food, equipment, and supplies.
- Purchase food in accordance with health and safety codes.
- Select, train, and supervise workers who plan, prepare, and serve meals.
Top Skills
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Knowledge Areas
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Education Level Distribution
Percentage of workers in this occupation by education level
Technology & Tools
Software and tools commonly used in this role
In-Demand Technologies
Other Tools
Work Styles
Personality traits and work styles important for this career
Key Abilities
Cognitive, physical, and sensory abilities important for this role
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Activities
General types of job behaviors occurring on this job
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Environment
Physical and social factors that influence the nature of work
Related Careers
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Salary data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024. Outlook data: BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034.
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license.